Fantasy Premier League Log GW22 – The 100 Club

The hectic festive fixtures are done and the 10 day gap is definitely a nice break for all to reflect on their successes and failures.

Heading into GW22, it is back to the regular flow, except for the small matter of the January transfer window. It goes without saying that it is best to keep away from players embroiled in transfer rumours as well as players who could lose their spot due to a new signing.

The best example in this case is Wolves’ Raul Jimenez. The arrival of Tammy Abraham could have easily hampered Jimenez’s influence and game-time until Nuno decides how to use them.

Now that the deal is off, the Wolves man will continue to lead the line. So, watch out for more such scenarios throughout the month.

Moving on, there are some interesting observations to make regarding the highest-scoring players in the game. Hopefully, this provides a new perspective for you to make decisions.

The inspiration for this article came from a tweet by FPLPriceChanges, who took my attention towards looking at players and their actual values differently.

So, let us take a look at “The 100 Club” now.

The 100 Club – Goalkeepers

If we take a look at all the players who have scored over 100 points until GW21, the cheapest of the lot would be Alisson. At £5.9, he is definitely the most expensive keeper in the game. However, he is the cheapest player who has crossed 100 points this season.

In FPL, it is important to keep our focus on points more than anything else. More often than not, we make knee-jerk changes and jump on/off bandwagons chasing points.

For anyone who has persisted with Alisson, they are definitely at a better place than the rest (including me), who are changing keepers and losing transfers in the process.

Further, given the way Liverpool’s defence is this season, and with only 3 games against the top six left, he is a sure-shot starter, unlike Trent, and could be a great option for your second Wildcard.n

The 100 Club – Defenders

There has been a huge clamour over Alonso’s perceived returns for being the most expensive defender in the game. While his attacking returns have dovetailed in recent months, the Chelsea left-back is still delivering.

In fact, he is the highest-scoring defender in the game. Again, there is no other player in the game who is cheaper than him and has more points.

Since the game is about points you actually have, Alonso (£6.7) is living up to his price. Further, the Chelsea defence is the third-best in the league, so the Spaniard can be expected to be among the clean-sheets.

The other two defenders in ‘The 100 Club’ are Liverpool duo Robertson (£6.6) and Virgil van Dijk (£6.4). Everything that was written above for Alisson applies here. Further, both are the safest starters in Klopp’s backline and the Reds are the best defence in the league this season.

The 100 Club – Midfielders

Now, here is the interesting part. There are NINE midfielders who have scored over 100 points this season, and a few more are on the cusp of breaching the mark as well.

This season is proving to be a great one to deploy the 3-5-2 formation more than ever, you can read my analysis of that here.

After all the doubts over Salah’s (£13.3) performances in the opening months coupled with his price this season, the most expensive player in the game is also its highest-scoring one too.

Behing the Liverpool man, are two more premiums in Chelsea’s Hazard (£11.1) and Manchester City’s Sterling (£11.3). Mane and Sane, both £9.5, also make the list.

The real success story on the list is Bournemouth’s Ryan Fraser (£6.1). Primarily an assist-based player, he has proved to be the value pick for those who have stuck with him all through the season.

Tottenham’s Son (£8.8) and Manchester United’s Pogba (£8.4) have exploded over the last month to breach the 100-mark while West Ham’s summer signing Felipe Anderson (£7.4) is proving to be a top addition this season.

So, the midfield is where there are a good number of premium as well as multiple mid-priced assets which makes a good case for picking FIVE playing midfielders. It is important to note that midfielders pick an extra point for a clean-sheet as well as for scoring a goal compared to forwards.

The 100 Club – Forwards

After a slow start to the season, Kane (£12.6) is back in form and among the points. Aubameyang (£11.4) started FPL with a bang last season and is continuing his rich vein of form. The highes-scoring forward is easily one of the most-reliable attackers in the game alongside Kane and Salah.

The surprise entrant into ‘The 100 Club’ in the forwards category is another Bournemouth player – Callum Wilson (£6.6). The Englishman is in the form of his life and is a decent mid-priced pick.

Finally, Liverpool’s Firmino(£9.2) completes the list. The Brazilian is a streaky player and is in a rich vein of form at the moment.

Conclusion

Looking at the lists, it is extremely clear that premiums are worth it. The highest-priced players lead their respective categories except for Kane in forwards, who is in second place.

Further, there are a good number of available options in midfield, which is leading to the increased rank fluctuations this season. So, reply on form, fixtures and your gut while you pick them.

Finally, it is important to look at defenders and goalkeepers who cost less than the attacker and yet fetch more points. It is important to compare them with attackers at their price and not with their defensive counterparts for understanding the value.

The only caveat here is that you are very likely to captain attackers over defensive players. So, bear that in mind as you prepare for GW22 and beyond.